I’ll be the first to admit I’m a creature of habit when it comes to PC accessories. My multimedia background has equipped me well enough to know that RGB and slick design does not equate to quality, and that you’re not going to get the best value for money opting for the most glamorous option on the market. And yet, despite that, I still shell out for matching Razer peripherals whenever it comes time to change something over. Putting a scrap of my credibility on the line; I most recently bought the Razer Chroma Deathstalker purely for the fact there was an app that synced the LEDs up to whatever music you happened to be listening to at the time.
Cool – very cool. And I think it impressed about two of my friends before the rest decided they wanted nothing more to do with me and stopped inviting me places (but that was only a matter of time anyway). I’d heard a lot about mechanical keyboards before I sat down with the Combaterwing T10, but considering the low, low price it currently sits at on Amazon (£40 at time of writing but always subject to change) I didn’t know quite what to expect. Plastic fantastic, or hidden gem?
I can honestly say the keyboard has blown me away in my short time with it. I don’t have a reference point for the more expensive options but the board has just the right amount of weight to it, the keys have that all-important click factor, and it’s hard to imagine the T10 facing any competition. It’s a solid offering in every way – the removable keys feel solid and secure in their bindings, and whether you’re gaming or typing out angry political opinions on Reddit it’s just a satisfying, tactile experience. I’ve never felt so powerful belittling people I don’t agree with on the internet. All jokes aside, this keyboard, simple but solid in its execution, has made me a full-on mechanical keyboard convert, which I’m sure will have a positive impact on my typing life and a negative one on my bank account.
Also pictured is the fantastic extra large Combaterwing mousepad which also doubles up as a blanket for medium-sized dogs.
The LEDs are customisable to an extent. There’s a bunch of pre-set modes you can swap between on the fly – which I’ll highlight in an upcoming video – including modes you expect like breathing and sequential, with a few pleasant surprises like the awesome but technically useless rippling keys. You can change the speed of the animations and the intensity of the illumination with simple button presses if you don’t like your RGB to be that aggressive. There’s even a custom mapping mode where you can record your own sequences. There are a few essential elements missing, though. There’s no solid colour mode – all the LEDs are fixed colours – which can make the keyboard look kind of tacky on occasion.
There are a few small downsides. While the keyboard itself is very well made, the included wrist support is extremely cheap glossy plastic. Perhaps it was just the one I was sent to review, but the screws were too big for the holes in both the keyboard and the support, meaning I haven’t actually been able to attach it, and it just flops around worthlessly against it like some kind of grim metaphor for my self respect. It’s a shame – the keyboard itself completely surpasses expectations for performance and extra features, while the (non)attachable wrist support and included accessories are more along the lines of what you’d expect for the price. It’s such a small inconvenience but definitely merits taking into consideration.
This is an amazing keyboard for the money. I’m certainly not going back to chiclet keys after using it.
4.5/5
